Urban core delivers plentiful resources, yet falls short.
In a recent nationwide survey, the city centre of Bergisch Gladbach received a satisfactory overall grade, but the results also highlighted areas for improvement. The study, known as "Vibrant City Centers 2024", surveyed passersby in 107 cities across Germany, including Bergisch Gladbach.
The survey found that 40% of respondents do not shop online at all, and 14% shop online more frequently and visit the city centre less often. The average age of visitors in the city centre is significantly higher than in cities of the same size, with two-thirds of all visitors being 51 years or older.
Shopping and gastronomy remain popular activities in the city centre, with 88% and 73% of visitors respectively coming for these purposes. However, only bookstores, food supply, and drugstore goods stand out positively in the retail offering of the city centre.
The top priority on the wish list is the provision of better public toilets (73%), followed closely by an expansion of offers for children and young people (51%), measures against vacancy (47%), and an improvement in the quality of stay (36%).
Cleanliness, safety, liveliness, green spaces, and seating options are all rated as satisfactory in the study. However, bike-friendliness receives poor ratings, which could be due to the worse weather on the day of the survey.
The survey participants rate both the overall attractiveness of the city centre and the range of retail stores as satisfactory (grade 2.9). Only six percent of respondents would recommend the Gladbach city centre to friends and acquaintances, a decrease from 32 to 26 percent compared to a survey two years ago.
Jonas Geist, the new head of the city's economic development, finds the study valuable and plans to discuss the results with the representatives of the retail industry. He acknowledges that the city centre needs to attract a wider demographic and improve its retail offerings to remain competitive.
Residents often feel satisfied with their city centre because they are familiar with its conveniences, services, and community atmosphere. However, hesitation to recommend the city centre to others can arise from several factors such as perceived limitations, overcrowding or congestion, safety or cleanliness issues, competition with other destinations, and concerns about increased traffic problems that diminish the quality of life.
The study did not capture data from all visitors to the city centre, but only from those available for an interview. Therefore, a more comprehensive study or survey specific to Bergisch Gladbach may provide further insights into the satisfaction of residents with their city centre and why they might be hesitant to recommend it to others.
- In light of the study's findings, Jonas Geist, the new head of Bergisch Gladbach's economic development, is planning to discuss the results with representatives from the retail industry, aiming to improve the city centre's retail offerings and attract a wider demographic to remain competitive.
- While shopping and gastronomy remain popular activities in the city centre, only bookstores, food supply, and drugstore goods receive positive ratings in the retail sector, indicating a need for enhancement in other retail areas.
- The survey participants cited the lack of better public toilets, expansion of offers for children and young people, measures against vacancy, and an improvement in the quality of stay as the top priorities for improving the city centre, with the hope that these changes would help attract a more diverse demographic and enhance the overall appeal of the city centre.
